Election Reform: California Change Worth Watching

Saturday

Nov 24, 2012 at 1:58 AM

Uprooting intense partisanship in Washington would be easier if fewer legislators represented safe, ideologically homogenous districts. Or so reformers have long maintained. Now, with the final results in from legislative races in California, that thesis will get a real-world test.

Excerpted from an editorial by Bloomberg News:

Uprooting intense partisanship in Washington would be easier if fewer legislators represented safe, ideologically homogenous districts. Or so reformers have long maintained. Now, with the final results in from legislative races in California, that thesis will get a real-world test.

California conducted two important election experiments this year. It switched from a system of traditional party primaries to one in which the top two candidates move on to the general election regardless of their party affiliations. In addition, it took redistricting powers out of the state legislature and invested them in a nonpartisan citizens commission.

This is not to say that politics changed overnight. ... Yet there were promising returns. ... The new system won't resolve the Republican Party's struggles in the state. ... But more-competitive districts and a top-two primary system may create more opportunities for Republican moderates to win seats, regain influence and shape a better future for their party.

California was not alone in its experimentation. In Arizona, which adopted a similarly nonpartisan redistricting process, three House districts were newly competitive; the race for the seat of former Rep. Gabrielle Giffords was so close it was only decided a week ago.

Less-partisan districts and a top-two primary system won't eliminate the partisan incentives that dictate much behavior in Washington. But early returns suggest Californians have adopted smart election innovations that may provide a boost to moderate political leaders of all stripes. If it works in California, it can work elsewhere.